In Vitro Biological Investigations of Petroleum Ether Fraction of Wedelia Trilobata Leaves

Abstract

The study was designed for biological investigations of petroleum ether fraction of methanolic extract of the leaves of Wedelia trilobata (Family: Asteraceae). The powdered leaves of Wedelia trilobata were extracted with methanol and then partitioned with petroleum ether, chloroform and ethyl acetate consecutively. And the aqueous fraction remaining at the end. The petroleum ether fraction was remaining at the beaker was investigated for the total flavonoid content, brine shrimp lethality test and antimicrobial test. The fraction contained 727 mg AAE/g of total flavaniod content. Screening for cytotoxic properties using brine shrimp lethality bioassay with tamoxifen (LC50 value of 13.38μg/ml) as positive control showed that the fraction have considerable cytotoxic potency exhibiting LC50 value 15.28 μg/ml. In antimicrobial activity investigation, the petroleum ether fraction showed low antibacterial and antifungal activity against the tested organisms compared to Ciprofloxacin (30μg/disc) that was used as positive control. The petroleum ether fraction showed strong cytotoxic activity, strong antioxidant activity and slight antimicrobial activity. Further investigations are needed for the proper identification and isolation of these bioactive compounds to produce safer drugs for treatment of harmful diseases.